Design Details

Summiteers the game is still in the final stages of development but rules website is coming along nicely. I'm especially excited about the design of this site because I think it's an area a lot of board games could benefit from. I'm hoping to release the design as a Webflow template in the near future and offer my design services to other board game companies.

Designing an app that looks good is always within one's reach, but getting another human to see your design through to a finished product is where the real challenge is.

Design like a developer is a great article with advice for how designers can improve their deliverables for developers. The section about thinking in terms of "Views" was particularly interesting to me. This method provides a logical organizational structure and specifications for a developer to follow.

I'm very interested in finding ways to bridge the gap between design and development. I see tools like Webflow, Zeplin, and Sketch plugins like Power Tools as big steps forward in creating consistency between design concept and the finished product.

This weekend was quite the political roller coaster. Even though this presidential ride has just begun, it's already in total free fall for human rights and the environment. There were signs of hope though. Thousands of signs, held by Americans who care about equality for every race, gender, and religion. These handwritten messages were a powerful reminder of the voice we all have.

Then on Sunday I came across the work of Magdiel Lopez who is producing some great work while making a poster a day. All of this has got me thinking of ways I can contribute to the visual narrative that will unfold over the next four years.

I came across an interesting music video this weekend by Milky Chance that puts the viewer in control of their experience. The viewer is able to flip between different camera angles and adjust the volume of instruments to participate in the jam session. It was fun to play art director and cut the camera angles to the beat.

The concept of interactive videos isn't new, but this is one of the better implementations I've seen. The interactive elements are kept simple and secondary to the music video, leading to a more engaging experience. Looking forward to interacting with their future chapters!

The latest prototype for Summiteers has arrived–hooray for progress! It's been over 6 months since our last print. We've refined a lot in that time: the artwork is still a work in progress, but the gameplay is complete (we hope!).

This is our first full-blown attempt at designing a board game and we are eager to see things all the way through to production. Up next we will be doing more testing, including appearances at Protospiel PDX and UNPUB Mini Portland 2. We plan to take feedback into account and do one final prototype print before preparing for a Kickstarter campaign this summer.

As a relatively new Oregonian, I'm only now learning about the legend that was Bob the Weather Cat. Back in the 80s, Bob would make a weekly appearance for the KATU weather report and delight viewers with epic cat costumes. The footage is pure gold.

RIP Bob. We could sure use your swanky style and positive message given the current state of affairs in America.

There's a lot to love about the design of the Withings Thermo. Just look at how stoked this baby is to be getting its temperature taken. Accuracy aside, Thermo makes temperature-taking delightfully simple by redefining the experience. This statement is echoed through the ID, single button interface, and dead front display.

It started off like any other trip to my favorite burger joint. I ordered the usual: 3x3, protein style with grill onions and no tomato. Then came the slowest eight minutes of my life. I grab ketchup, napkins, and do my best to pass the time while preparing for the feast. As I filled my cup with water from the soda dispenser, I couldn’t help but notice how depressingly boring the water fountain tap was.

This was a quick proof of concept design effort to test out the power of the new Webflow CMS feature.

I've been a Webflow fan for years and was stoked when I heard about this new feature. After finally using it, the CMS tool did not disappoint. I was able to structure the database specifically around my content and build out the website in realtime, linking directly to content in the CMS while I design.

The days of Hipster Ipsum are finally over. With Webflow CMS, design and content can be crafted together.

While visiting Japan last April, I made it a priority to bring back a few Japanese board games. Luggage space and not being able to read Kanji severely limited my selection, but one day I discovered the tiny blue iconic box of Deep Sea Adventure. It was the perfect game to discover on that trip.

Deep Sea is a light filler game where players dive into the ocean and collect treasure. Gameplay is simple: players roll dice to move and only make a few decisions during the game. The kicker is the game ends once players have collectively used up all of the oxygen in the submarine. This leads to a fun push your luck concept where players must inform their strategy based on the play of the other players. Discovering this game lead to a flurry of inspiring design ideas to our upcoming mountain climbing game: Summiteers.